Lost and Unaware
by Calla109
Summary: Bella Comes to the small town of Forks in search of quite stability to help with her anxiety disorder. But when she meets a girl from a local family what she gets is just the opposite. Alice/Bella slash
1. Bourbon Eyes BPOV

The coffee house was smaller then I was used to in Phoenix. But then again so was the entire town. Coming from a big city to a small town like Forks Washignton was a hard transition. One I was still in the process of trying to grasp, never mind adjust to. Thanks to my Moms worries, at the first sign of any problems on my side of life I was shipped here to live with my Dad, Charlie. Not that I didn't like my Dad, I just didn't like where he lived. And now that's where I lived.

Walking through the door I could see that it was all one room. It had a counter filled with pastries, sandwiches and of course coffee, pushed to the right, using up most of the front window space. To the left and throughout the back were multiple areas for people to sit together using all upholstered furniture and low coffee tables with the exception of what looked like an old kitchen table and chair set in the back right corner. The couple sitting there must have an open view of the entire room being higher up then any of the other sitting areas. The walls were painted a dull yellow to help pull together the assortment of miss matched furniture. Each couch, ottoman and chair spread through the great room had dark red, blue, green and orange blankets thrown across their backs. People were sitting in small groups throughout, sipping coffee and leaning towards each other in soft conversation. The area had a comfortable sociability about it which will hopefully help me with my unshakable awkwardness. Jessica lead me to counter where she order some drink I have never heard of before. My eyes were still wondering the room when she grabbed my arm so I could place my order to. "Uh, can I have an..." I tried to race through the menu above the counter but I couldn't quite retain any of the words I was reading. "Tea, do you have ice tea?" The girl at the counter seemed annoyed and looked at me like I was stupid. "Uh, yeah. Unsweetened?"

Her obvious battle with untamable friz was enough of a punishment for me so I just answered her unfazed.

"Yes please." I paid and followed Jessica to an unclaimed couch and coffee table.  
"So Bella, you totally have to hear what Mike said to me!" She just about jumped out off of the cushion trying to get closer to me. It was at times like this I wondered why I was friends with her. I was never the type to sit around and talk excitedly about my boyfriend. If I did have a boyfriend I would probably want to be with him right now. Not stuck in some coffee house named 'Grind it Up'. But she was the first person to talk to me in this town and I completely owed her for saving me at the gas station. Not every knows how to pump their own gas.

I was stranded at the pump just staring at the nozzle in pure fear when she came up to me and asked if I needed help. Its not like people don't pump their own gas in Phoenix its just that I never had my own car before. She was my savior that day and I owed her for it. So I dealt with her gossipy nature and her mumbled criticisms of my wardrobe and apparently lack of style.

The mean counter lady brought us our order over and I could tell she was thinking of dropping it on me. I just looked her in the eyes and she walked away. Funny I can stare someone down but not order off a stupid chalk menu.  
As the door creaked open my eyes casual drifted towards it. My mind, currently concentration on the conversation I was have with Jessica, did not follow. It was a habit of mine. No matter what I was doing when someone walked into a room I always looked up. I don't know what I was looking for, or expected see, but none the less I always looked. Today was no exception.

"So I asked him, 'Did you notice --'" It took a total of .002 seconds for my eyes to lock onto the newest occupant of the room. It took me a total of five minutes for my mind to catch up after. The most enchanting being floated into view slowly moving from around the open door. The room seemed to fill with a smog that muffled all conversations and noise. There was another with her but I didn't notice. How could I? It took all of my concentration to try and absorb all the details of her appearance. She was short but not out of proportionate to the rest of her body. Her height seemed normal even though now I knew she was considered quite small. I remember thinking - no, thinking wasn't the right word, there were no thoughts in my mind. I got a feeling, a sense of her. A sweet, light breeze of a girl. Like she glided right out of some fantasy romance novel. She was made of all goodness and nobility but was one of those creatures that you later found out was not completely human. And beautiful. My god was she beautiful. The kind of face that made you want to look around and make sure that others could see the rays of light coming off of her. Her hair was dark and short that seemed to have a tamed mess to it; sticking out in unpredictable directions. She was wearing a deep yellow dress that fell off her body to her mid thigh. The dress had mostly no form to it, leaving the contours of her body to your imagination. Dark tights covered her legs and heels seemed to give her some much needed height. Her lips were not a dark red, something you would expect from a pale girl with dark hair, but a shade that suggested healthy life. Her lips curved into into a half smile and when her eyes locked with mine their golden hue seemed to darken into a bourbon caramel that warmed my stomach much like the real thing would. Her eyes danced with excitement and mischief which added a depth of character to my innocent fantasy book image. That is when my mind caught up with my eyes.

"Who is that?" I asked Jessica not caring that she was still attemting to fill me in on her lastest tiff with her boyfriend Mike. Her nose twitched with her annoyance but she turned to look anyway.

"Ohhh, yeah that's Edward Cullen. He's Dr. Cullen's son. Really hot but completely snobbish. Any girl that tries to talk to him winds up with freezer burn if you know what I mean," she finished giggling at her own joke.

My face contorted into confusion. Edward? Who the hell was Edward? That's when I noticed the girl's companion. A boy who was indeed very hansom and seemed to have the same fiction like substance to his appearance was standing next to the girl. He was dressed in some stylish jeans and a dark tee shirt that seemed very simple but the fit suggested it was expensive. He to was looking around the room, as if they were searching for someone. She had thought I meant the guy. Well that would make sense to her.

"Umm...is that his girlfriend?" God, now I just sounded like a pathetic teenager groping at some mini prince charming.  
Jessica looked back over her shoulder and snickered.

"No silly! That's Alice. His sister. She is like massively weird," she seemed to be scratching at her nose like she was trying to cover her mouth. Jeez if you are gonna talk about people at least have the balls to say it with confidence. I looked back up at the two who were now sitting at a table in the corner with two others. Another boy that had to be on steroids or something. I immediately decided he was on the football team and considering his expression at the moment his IQ was probably stereotypical. And then there was the girl practically plastered on his arm. She too was beautiful but in a unnatural spends hours in front of the mirror type of way.

Edward was looking at Jessica with what appeared to be a look of disgust while Alice was leaning into Edward with a hurt expression. My heart ached immediately for her. What could have caused her to be so upset when not three seconds earlier she was smiling around? Had she heard Jessica? Did their family have some kind of super hearing abilities? Is that why Jessica was trying to hide her mouth? Then why say something so mean?

I looked to Jessica, a new found feeling of dislike towards her growing in my chest. She seemed to care less that the back table was sending her death vibes. Well I certainly wasn't going to get caught in the cross fire.

"I'm kinda pooped. I'll catch you Monday at school ok?" Jessica started to reply as I attempted to stand but the strap to my bag got caught on her chair and I winded up in her lap. She laughed at my clumsiness and grabbed onto waist to help stabilize me before I wound up on the floor too. I could feel my face turning red and I made myself giggle in an effert to seem less mortified while I quickly glanced around the room to see if anyone had noticed. Everyone was going about their own business thank god. I managed to pull myself upwards and all ill feelings towards Jessica dissipated in my gratitude from saving me from rug burn on my face.

"Man Bella you need to get your inner ear checked or something" she said between laughs.

I smiled brightly at her and shrugged, "but then I wouldn't be delightfully clumsy Bella would I?" I leaned down to kiss her on the check when my eyes caught a pair of black eyes staring at me. My breathe caught between my lips and I wound up making a squeaking sound as they met Jessica's cheek. I hovered in the position while I tried to decipher what was going on. Alice was blatantly looking at me, no glaring at me with the darkest expression I have received in a long time. Edward was tugging at her arm with his mouth bent close to her ear hurriedly telling her something that seemed to soften her grimace. Air gushed from my mouth that I quickly tried to form into words, "uh....see you tomorrow."  
I straightened myself and used every fiber of my body to turn away from the back table and head towards the door.


	2. Therapeutic Trees BPOV

Pushing up the stairs I closed the distance between me and the safety of my room as fast as possible without causing suspicion. Charlie was on the couch watching tv, somewhere I wanted him to stay. Once my door was closed I hit the ground clutching my hand to my chest. I couldn't control my breathing and I could feel myself growing close to hyperventalating. My fingers twisted into my carpet as my mouth twisted open in a silent scream. Get out of me, get out of me, GET OUT OF ME!! There was pressure building behind my rib growing beyond the space alotted in my body. I pictured my chest errupting and nothing but air pouring our. My blood was pounding in my ears deffening me to anything else. Tears were spilling down my cheeks and into my open mouth as raspy breathes bubbled out. The muscles in my back and legs were cramping in protest against the tight position they were being pulled into. I felt like I was spinning above my carpet, there was no air, no movement, no releif. I crawled towards my night stand and desperately grabbed the bottle of valuum hidding in my drawer. The hand that was still pressed against my chest pulled at my shirt and I stared at it wondering what power of control it was under now because I sure as hell didn't make it do that. Shoving the bottle between my now foreign hand and my twisted shirt I stumbled to my feet and fumbled against the wall in the hall to the bathroom. Pratically choking myself, the pill and water was down my throat before it could close off in objection. I took three deap breathes before I turned back towards my room. I made it to my bed just in time. The room spull exactly five times before I was able to sigh into a deep sleep.

The thing about having anxiety is that everything revolves around it. Anything I do is related in someway to it. Whether its not doing something because I know it will be too much for me, avoiding specific situations in order to aviod an attack, or purposefully doing something that I know will help minimize my anxiety later. Basically my enitre life is a well devised schedule to either avoid or counter act any possiblities of an anxiety attack. And, because of my anxiety, I am ok with that.  
I learned early on that in order to be able to relax everything needed to be in order. Anything that needed to get done that day (shopping, cleaning, homework ect.) needed to be off my mind.  
So here I am, finishing up the dishes, awaiting my much needed down time. After last night, all that happenned at the coffee shot and then my attack at home I was longing for some good old fashion quiet time. Rinshing off the last plate I gingerly placed it int he drying rack, replaced the rubber gloves over the faucet and made my way up stairs.  
The sun was shinning today so I was planning on taking advantage of my empty house and in return empty back yard. Grabbing a book and my ipod I headed out the door not caring that I was barefoot. Once outside I took a deap breathe and almost immediatly I could feel the effects of nature. It was like a drug to me. I could never get enough and if I was away from it too long I started getting ansy. It was my one and only cure for my anxiety and even that didn't work all the time. But it was sure working now. I could feel the tension, I didn't even know was there, rolling off my sholders as I waked across the lawn. I watched the grass pop up between my toes as grwew closer to the tree that I had had my eye on since looking out the kitchen window two days ago. I had only been here four days and this was my first time in the yard. A small smile found its way to my lips as I decided I like the feel of the grass on my feet much better then the sand from the dessert back home. The forest that very nearly threatened to consume Charlie's backyard provided a relieving amount of privacy that I never felt in Phoenix. Although I could do with a lot less rain, I was in love with all the trees.  
Looking up at the first branch that just reached the top of my head I began to hesitate. I wasn't the most graceful creature to walk the earth that was for sure, but for some reason when it came to things where my feet didn't touch the ground I surpased even the most stable ground walker. A couple of years ago I was at a lake with some friends. An attempt to conquor the endless summer heat. There was a long dock with eight row boats tied along it in a row. What possessed me to try and jump from boat to boat instead of using the dock I couldn't tell you but my friends said I had looked like I could walk on water. Yet as soon as I stepped foot onto the solid dock I tripped and landed in the water.  
Throwing cation to the wind I grabbed hold of the branch and jumped. My legs swung up and I caught the top part of the branch with the heel of my left foot. I bent my knee to try and pull myself closer to my goal thanking god I hadn't put sneakers on. I would never have been able to bend my foot the way that was necessary to kep contact with the tree. Once my body was touching the under part of the branch I hooked my left foot around the branch giving me a solid grip to pull my torso around in order to be sitting on the top side of the branch. I sat in the tree stradling the branch facing the forest and brushed my hands off with a satisfied smile. The act took less then a minute and to any by stander probably looked like I had been climbing trees my whole life.  
I laid my body parallel with the branch, propped my feet up agaisnt the trunck, pulled the book I had grabbed out of my pocket and set out to doing some damage to 'The Virgin Suicides'. I probably shouldn't be reading something that was sure to awaken my old demons but I couldn't help it. I was eternially attracted matters of a darkened heart. A gust of wind picked up blowing my hair around my face. I stretched out my arms enjoying the breeze and the feeling of the air running across my body. Bliss. An overwelming sense of calm and bliss rose withing my viens pushing against my skin raising goosebump. Without realizing I dropped my book to the side, swept up in an absorption of peace. My breathing evened out and before I knew it I was asleep.


	3. Misunderstandings APOV

My eyes, without needing to blink, remained glued to her window. I had followed her all the way home, through her house, up the stairs and watched in horror as she collapsed to the floor. When I had first seen her in the coffee house my useless heart had lepped through my chest. Until then, humans had all been of the same caliber. But this one had the beauty of a vampire. No, not a vampire. She had a beauty that surpassed any human or vampire. She was pale like a vampire but had such warmth vibrating within her cheeks that venom was pooling in my mouth as I sat here thinking about it. Her long luscious hair had the color of melted chocolate-covered strawberries and when my eyes had met hers my body seized with want. I had never reacted to any human or vampire in such a way that I couldn't take my eyes off of her all night. Edward had to drag me to the back table to meet with Emmet and Rosalie. I was desperate to know everything and anything about this girl so I listened in her conversation.

Jessica was blabbering on about some boy I could care nothing about. But it was the girl's question that had me at the edge of my seat.

"Who is that?" She had interrupted Jessica's ramblings and her annoyance was evident on her face. I adverted my attention to Edward in order to avoid eye contact with Jessica. It was bad enough that both my brothers and my sister knew I was staring I didn't need her to know. Once I heard Jessica reply my attention was back in a second.

"Ohhh, yeah that's Edward Cullen. He's Dr. Cullen's son. Really hot but completely snobbish. Any girl that tries to talk to him winds up with freezer burn if you know what I mean." If it could I'm sure my heart would have broken right there. She was interested in Edward. Of course she wants Edward, every girl in this town wants him. The confusion on her face made me sit back on my seat. What was there not to understand?

"Umm...is that his girlfriend?" I would have laughed if the question didn't reaffirm her attraction to my brother.

"No silly! That's Alice. His sister. She is like massively weird," I sighed in grief and turned to Edward for comfort. It seemed that I was doomed to an ever retched first impression and yet to never be apart of it.

My sullen moment was cut short when my overbearing curiosity won out. And then, committing a final act of suicide I glanced back at the girl to see her sitting in Jessica's - _Jessica's _lap. A stream of disgusted words flew out of my mouth only loud enough for my siblings to hear. If I was still on a human diet I was sure I would have vomited right there.

To think that this fairytale wonder was interested in my brother was a tolerable concept considering that every human girl seemed to be. But to warm up to Jessica, a girl who's favored hobby consisted of gossip and boy troubles, a girl who's interest in herself was enough to excuse the rest of the known world from ever showing her any attention caused my insides to churn.

When the girl looked to me again in a way that portrade shock and perhapse even fear I realized that my face must be portraying at least half of the anger, disgust and yes - jealousy I was feeling. Ugh. To be jealous of Jessica set my confidence level at an all time low.

"Sis, it is not all for which it seems." Edward was trying to calm me down but he did not know my anguish. To have found someone I could be with. Someone who held my interest longer then the minute it took me to consume all the individuality they brought to this world, and then find them to be involved with someone else? It was a crushing moment indeed.

I looked to Edward with the intention of asking him to please not placate me but he shushed me.

"Alice, they are just friends. New ones at that. Remember I can read minds. The girl fell onto her. An innocent mistake." His crooked smile showed no signs of deceit.

A wave of relief washed through my dead body. It was a misunderstanding.

"Yes, Alice, a misunderstanding."

I elbowed him to quiet down. Although his ability did come in handy (especially when you have a moment of panic when realizing the potential love of your life may be taken) in times when clarification is needed, it is not always welcome.

And then the girl was gone. Emmett said she had fled in fear. Fear that I had caused. I had to go to her. I had to know what she was thinking, feeling. I had to see her one more time. Every time. Forever.


	4. Teenage American Fad APOV

**A/N: The first two chapters were in Bella's POV but that last two have been in Alice's. I'm sorry for the confusion I will be more clear from this point forward. Thanks for reading I cold use more Reviews though ;)**

ALICE POV

Bidding my siblings a hurried goodnight I rushed out into the chilly night that I barley noticed. I spotted her car - if one could allot that the honor of such a title, across the street just as she sped away. I had not yet identified her sent so my trail home would have to be a visual one. I choose the woods that ran parallel to the main street in town this way I could keep up my speed without being noticed.

I could tell her driving was hurried but only to the extent the local law allowed. So she was a law abiding teenager. Interesting. We don't get many of those around here, and frankly it added doubt to her understanding of my family's and my rather unique situation. I slowed down as she turned onto a side street. This was probably where she lived. Just about everyone in this small town lived on a street that fed into the main one.

I had never been down this one, or in this part of the woods. My mind did a quick calculation of the treaty borders to make sure I hadn't crossed them. Although I know it would never have happened accidentally. You could sell the trails for at least a mile.

This part of woods was like a small peninsula that grew out of the main section. It ended surrounding the small clearing I assumed this house considered their backyard.

Her house it seemed. She pulled into the drive right next to a police cruiser. Well that explained her fondness of the law. I wonder who it was that owned that vehicle.

She was out of the car in a second, my heart swelling at her sight. I breathed deeply trying to catch her sent but the wind was blowing in the opposite direction leaving me with pine and dirt. She was in the house just as quickly as she was out of her cas. This puzzled me. Most teenagers have no sense of rush. They just drift through life going from one spontaneous activity to the next. Unless of course she had some sort of curfew she was late for, but it was not even ten yet with no school tomorrow.

"Charlie, I'm home," she called once inside.

Charlie. I know that name. Carlisle knows Charlie...Charlie Swan. The Chief of Police. Oh God she's the Chief of Police's daughter. That _would_ be my luck. Well at least I don't do drugs. My lips turned up slightly at my own joke. Yes because not doing drugs makes being a vampire so much better.

"Bella, did you have a good time?" Bella. _Bella_. Her name was Bella. I now had a new word for perfection. For unmatched beauty. For angel. Bella.

"Yeah, great. Night." Her response seemed hurried. Even as she spoke she was climbing the stairs.

And here I am staring in frozen panic outside her house, her window, awaiting to see her rise again. It had been exactly two minutes since I saw her collapse-a lifetime for a vampire-and I was beginning to fear for the worst.

I was a very impatient being to begin with, which probably seems odd when I have eternity to wait, and these moments of suspense were eating away at my grasp on discretion.  
I was at the tree in front of their house in less then a second. My body no longer in tune with my thoughts; following a path of its own. Up a tree standing on a branch outside her window was definitely not what Carlisle would consider in the best interest of the clan.

I stood there in quiet agony, my eyes wide, my mouth parted. There she was. Tightly curled on the ground with one hand clutching at her chest and the other twisted in the dark purple rug. I could hear her hushed whimpers between her labored breathing. My eyes were darting about the room trying to understand what had happened. Had she fallen? No, I saw her collapse. Was she sick? What was causing my angel such grief?

That was when I had seen her tears. She was crying. My shoulders slumped as I realized this was nothing more then an average teenage hormonal outburst. I leaned closer to the window trying to get a better look. It didn't seem like a normal occurrence to me at all. There seemed to be some source to it all. The entire scene seemed drenched in pain and desperation. I could almost taste the panic in the air. Whether it was mine or hers I couldn't decide.

She struggled off the ground and weakly crawled towards a dresser in the room. Digging through a drawer I watched as her shoulders seemed to move with each breath. I sign that air didn't pass easliy. I had to tense my entire body to keep myself from going to her. To comfort her. Heal whatever ailment consumed her.

She emerged with a pill bottle. My eyes narrowed. Perhaps this _was _a normal teenage outburst. As normal as can be when you are taking pills to control your emotions. Carlisle told me about this. About the new fad in teenage America. Prescription drugs.

I watched her leave the room and enter the bathroom, shoving the pill down her throat chased by some water from the tap. I could feel all the hope I had felt slowly draining from my limbs like someone had nicked a hole in my heel and sand was pouring out.

She groggily walked back into the room her hands at her side for the first time and practically fell onto her bed. My head bent in defeat. I was wrong. This was not the girl for me. I was distracted by her beauty and never considered what lay beneath the surface. How very adolescent of me. Carlisle would be proud. I let myself fall from the tree barely landing on my once nimble feet. Tonight I would walk home. I was in no rush to see my family. Edward had probably filled everyone in by now and I just wanted to pretend nothing had ever happened.

With a slow step and a heavy heart I unwillingly dragged myself back to my house.


	5. Will the Real Alice Please Stand Up APOV

**Author's Note**: Perhaps patience and faith should be a future acquisition to all of you who felt my Alice was OC. I hope this clears up any character confusions. Thanks to all of you who are following my story! More Reviews would be appreciated. :)

ALICE POV

When I walked into the house it was eerily quiet. I'm sure in a normal household it would be presumed that everyone was asleep. However, in this household it made my eyebrow rise in suspicion. Normally i would bounce threw the house trying to find someone to play with but tonight I just wanted the security and sanctuary of my room.

And there is was. I walked into the living - no I do not know what I walked into. There on the couch was Edward and Esme holding hands and looking the epitome of sympathetic parents. Since when did Edward become my father? Rosalie and Emmet were in the corner by the window. Trying to not be apart of this as best as they could without actually not being there. Carlisle and Jasper in were in the doorway. I felt waves of peace washing over me and I was grateful for it. I was sick of feeling this way. This wasn't me. I felt like someone had taken over my emotional response system and allowed it to go haywire. I wanted my old self back, I had to leave.

"We wont allow it." Edward stood. Probably to add force behind his words but I was desperate to free myself of this new me. It was like my light, happy soul had been weighted down by chains of anger and depression.

"It's called passion Alice. The spectrum goes in both directions." His held tilted to the left making me smile just a bit. He just used a classically young expression to physically say 'duh'. Forks was rubbing off on him.

"Alice, its true. You must really care for this girl to feel this awful about it." There was Jasper and his always ready meter o' emotions.

"Thanks guys, but you don't know what happened. Its over. Its over before it even began." I turned towards the stairs but Carlisle grabbed my arm.

"What happened? Maybe we can help." I looked back at him and damn him for being my father. His face, reflecting nothing but concern and love, made me crumble every time.

"It was awful!" I fell to the ground in such a childish way I would have laughed if I wasn't so upset. I buried my face in my hands trying to block out all the memories of that damned pill bottle.

"What pill bottle?" God Edward! If you weren't my favorite brother I would throttle you right now!

He smiled at that. He liked being m favorite. He liked even more, that he _knew_ he was my favorite.

"Would someone like to fill the rest of us non mind slash emotions readers in, please?" This was Rosalie's annoyed request. Probably just upset the conversation wasn't about her. As I showed no sign of spilling my guts, so to speak, Rosalie threw her arms up in frustration.

Carlisle sat down in front of me bowing his head to make eye contact with me. "There was a pill bottle?" he asked in a soft coxing voice. I stared at him fighting with myself. I wanted to tell them everything. I wanted them to know how horrible it was. How utterly heart crushing the last few hours were for me but I couldn't. Something in me was holding me back. Oh my god, I was embarrassed, ashamed. Jasper lay a hand on my shoulder and immediately I felt new bouts of peace and confidence. I weakly smiled at him.

"You went to her house." This was Edward again. I didn't even look up. I knew he could see it in my head and if he wanted to be the one to narrate be my guest. I would rather sit here in quiet torture for the rest of my existence. He must of taken my lack of response as permission to continue. "She's charlie's daughter, Bella Swan."

Bella. My body sulked at the name. My Bella I could never have. I would refuse to have. " You saw her collapse from her window." The panic I felt then was resurfacing and I wanted to rip it out of my body. She didn't deserve such concern. I was angry now. Angry at her for not being what I wanted, needed. And angry at myself for loosing so quickly the thing I have waited so long to have.

Jasper was backing away now. I hadn't moved but I could hear his footsteps. I was too emotional for him now. He couldn't help. I was doomed to wallow in my own drowning heart.

It was taking Edward a while to shift through my jumbled thoughts. He was trying to put together a time line but I couldn't figure it out myself. It was like I was stuck inside a box that someone was filling with water. I was trying to figure out how to get free all the while knowing I couldn't and I would be stuck there to sit and watch my death rise to meet me. I looked up finally at everyone. They were all staring at me. Even Rosalie and Emmet were looking at me in mild concern. Probably because I had never acted like this. It would be like Emmet crying. It just didn't happen.

The living room was large. We loved to have a lot of space to move around in so every room in the house was over sized. The piano sat in the left corner of the room and as you walked through the doorway it caught your eye constantly setting the mood. On the right was the couch and love seat set in an 'L' formation to help with the flow of conversation. They were pure white with pale lavender pillows, something that Emmet complained about constantly. There was a fireplace against the far wall with a white mantle that held cast iron candle sticks along it. A great mirror framed in black hung above it throwing the reverse image of the room back at me. We didn't have many trinkets so most table tops either help lamps, picture frames or were left bare. The two end table next to the couch were not exception. A tall lamp stood in the right front corner to help with lighting the sitting area. There were no rugs, just dark hard wood floors that ran throughout the house. All the walls were covered in windows that normally would give you relief from feeling caged in.

Tonight however, with the sun down and the lights on in the house, they left me with the reflection of myself only aiding in my emotional suffocation.

"Alice your thoughts are erratic. Calm down." His voice was testy yet firm. I looked up and he was staring at me drenched in consitration. Calm down? "Yes calm down. Stop thinking about now." Carlisle took my hand drawing my eyes to him. His smile was reassuring. "You went up the tree outside her room. Even though you knew Carlisle would not be happy with it." I flinched. He had to add that last part? Carlisle's smile never wavered. I guess in the grand scheme of things it didn't matter that much now. "She was on the ground crying. You thought something had happened. She couldn't breath that well and she was grabbing at her chest with her hand. You could feel the panic and Alice, it was her not you." I looked to him. How could he be sure. "I'm the objective one remember?" As he continued I looked to the floor. I didn't want to see any ones reaction as he neared the end. "She got up, not easily I might add. She had to crawl to her dresser. She found the pill bottle and rushed to the bathroom to take one. When she came back she was sluggish. That's when she fell asleep and Alice decided she didn't want anything to do with a, what did you call it? An average teenage fad?" The mocking in his voice cut through my hardened resolve.

"Ugh gross! Pills?! That is so last year. No body does that anymore." Rosalie offered from the corner. I didn't even bother to look at her. I knew neither of them would be of any help.

I tried to find comfort in Carlisle but he was looking at Edward. I hated when they did this. They had this way way of communicating without words. Edward could read minds but Carllisle...Carlisle could just read Edward. When he finally looked back to me he was smiling. But not in a comforting way in, a sincere way. A way that gave me hope. "Alice it wasn't what you thought."

"Again I might add dear sister." Edward and his playful tone could kiss my ass.

"She wasn't abusing them Alice." Carlisle grabbed my hand again. She wasn't abusing them? So what? She just had a mini melt down right before her normal bedtime meds that knock her out?

"Alice," he was laughing. I looked to Edward in horror. How could he possibly be laughing right now. "Alice, she was an emotional disorder. Sort of like what you are having right now." he was still laughing. I stood up and started towards him. I was about to give him a physical disorder but Esme stood.

"Alice dear, although I'm sure Edward could show you a little more compassion in doing so, I think he is trying to tell you something." She stepped between us, always the mother.

Carlisle came up behind me laying his hands on my shoulders. "She has an anxiety disorder. Charlie came to me a while ago when he found out Bella was coming to stay. He never had to deal with the disorder before and wanted to know more about it before she came. She takes Valium to help when she is having an anxiety attach. Completely innocent, although I am glad you shied away from what you thought was wrong."

My mind came to a screeching halt. Everything I was thinking and feeling was immediately invalid. I felt foolish. Of course there was a reasonable explanation. Leave it to me to blow everything out of proportion and dramatize everything. How very stupid everyone must think I am.

"No Alice, never." Edward of course.

And then it hit me. Bella wasn't some angst ridden teenage punk. She was once again my angel. My heart and soul. I had my love back. I could once again feel the excitement rushing through my veins. I flew off the floor and was hugging Edward in a second. Jumping up and down I made my way back to Carlisle and kissed his cheek with such force that if he was still human it would have bruised. I let out a squeak of joy as I spun in a circle three times before landing in Esme's arms.

"I'm so happy for you." Her smile was genuine and only added to my high energy. Jasper was back in the room now smiling along with me. He couldn't help it. He was feeling what I was feeling. The realization of that made me giggle at him and he laughed with me. Rosalie and Emmet still in the corner offered no thoughts either way which I preferred.

Bella was good and sweet and mine! I ran up the stairs to my room and then back down to the living room. Everyone was still in the same positions as before and I stood there smiling at everyone.

"I guess this means you are feeling better?" Rosalie decided now was a good time to speak.

"Yes. I am. Very much so indeed!" I giggled again and clapped my hands together. Jasper laughed with me again and I was beginning to like not always being alone in my private celebrations.

"Right on Little Sis!" Emmet punched his fist in the air. I was sure he had not a clue as to what was going on but I didn't care. I always felt the more the merrier so I smiled and spun for him. He laughed once before getting elbowed in the chest by Rosalie.

"Well now that this is taken care of Emmet and I have some unfinished business." She walked out of the room with Emmet in toe. As he passed me he gave me a high five which I gladly returned.

"So Alice what is your next step?" Carlisle asked, I'm sure trying to make sure I wasn't about to do anything that would expose the vampire culture to the rest of the world.

What do I do next? My head tilted to the side as a finger landed on my chin in thought. I tucked my lower lip under my tooth and sighed. All eyes were on me awaiting my next words. And that was when it hit me.

"Oh god! I haven't even talked to her yet!!!"


	6. Fairy Tale Hallucinations BPOV

School.

Today was school, my first day at that. I hated the attention I was sure today would mean. It made my skin crawl and I push at my arm to try and rub it out. I got out of bed and looked out the window. I couldn't help but smile when I saw the new truck Charlie had gotten me. My hand came up to cover my mouth as I laughed out loud. 'New' probably wasn't the right word to use to describe the truck. In fact was pretty old. It used to belong to one of Charlie's friends from the reservation. It was completely old and red and I loved it.

Charlie's cruiser was gone so the stress of having to deal with him trying to deal with me was gone. He was great, and it meant a lot to me that he tried so hard to help me deal with my anxiety. His problem is he thinks he has no idea how to deal or help with anything when really all you have to do is be observant and consistent. People always over think it.

I shrugged and walked to my closet to pull out clothes for the day. Good thing none of my clothes were anything other than material to cover my body otherwise I would have to deal with figuring out what to wear my first day too. I decided on jeans, sneakers with a white tank and thick woven cardigan sweater. I still wasn't used to the cold here and I wasn't taking any chances.

I showered and got dressed like any other morning and it comforted me. The normality of my morning kept the buzzing within my body at a quiet hum. I left my hair to dry on its own. It would be a soft wave by mid morning. I grab a soaked lock and stared. It had to be brown didn't it? The most plain and boring hair color there was. Well at least it matched me. I don't think I could pull of a golden blonde or fiery red. It would draw way too much attention and I would end up disappointing everyone any way.

I grabbed an oatmeal breakfast bar, my bag and umbrella and concentrated on my feet to keep myself from thinking about the destination they were taking me.

One thing I demanded was that the radio in my new car worked. Charlie had to go and by a whole new one but now I could connect my phone to it and play anything I wanted. So as I jogged to the truck I searched through my bag to find my phone.

Once I had the truck going on a steady pace down the empty road I let the music flow through me.

Music could remove me from any current situation I was in. It was like it filled my mind and made everything else a distant fog. I could create an entire false reality in my mind to play in sync with the sounds and let it consume me. There was nothing else at the time. My body pulsed with the beat making my only realty the notes playing around me.

As I pulled into the school parking lot I couldn't figure out how I had gotten here, but it happened so often I didn't give it much thought.

I put the car in park and took a deep breath. Until this point I had avoided looking out the windshield in fear of other students looking in. If I could just blend in with the rest of the student body for the day I would be fine. I would deal with tomorrow, tomorrow.

I grabbed my bag, pulled the keys out of the ignition and opened my door. Immediately I was assaulted by the unforgiving Washington wind. I could feel the prickling on my cheeks that I was sure would leave them a pulsing pink well into the morning. I slung my bag over my shoulder and went in the direction of the admissions office.

To bystanders it would seem that I was paying absolutely no attention to anyone around me. I hadn't even so much as glanced over anyone's face. In reality, I could see everyone around me. I could see their feet facing me and their torsos turning in my direction.

My attention was, however, caught by a shiny silver car parked in the lot. Great not only was I going to be the weird new girl I was going to be the poor one too.

I got my schedule from an elderly lady in the office that made it very clear that it was a matter of life and death that I get every teacher on my schedule to sign next to their name. So I set out on my momentous mission and headed to my first class.

I weaved through the students in the hallway begging whatever god would listen to me to let me find my first class on my own.

As the first bell neared it was becoming increasing clear that I was not going to find it and I was going to have to shrug off my denial and ask someone.

White knuckling my schedule I forced my chin up and looked around me. I was met by a sea of eyes all trained on me; confirming that yes I was the star of this morning's events. I finally spotted a back of a head. Someone who was not focusing on me and that is who I headed for. I was sure that if I asked anyone else it would be followed by jumbled question of where I was from and what did I like to do and all of those annoying 'get to know you' dialogs.

My feet were still in the 'do not approach anyone or you might self combust' mode so I had to work against them to make it over to the locker the boy was showing attention to.

"Um, Excuse me," My voice came out in barely a whisper so low I was sure I was going to have to repeat myself.

His head turned towards me and one of my feet took an automatic step back as I immediately realized that it was the boy from the coffee shop. Holy Shit! My fingers dug into the paper I was holding crinkling it into my palm. My heart jumped and my eyes quickly scanned the crowd for the boy's sister. She was not here. My body relaxed a little at her absence until I looked back at his face and found a confused yet tolerant half smile facing me.

"Yes?" He leaned back against his locker in a way that suggested annoyance wrapped into a bit of John Wayne's casual smooth.

At this point I was in such an awkward state I had completely forgotten what it was I needed from him. I shifted on my feet for half of a second before taking a breath and turning away.

I walked as quickly away from him as I could fighting to not look back the whole time. My eyes were on the floor as I watched the green linoleum tiles rhythmically build one in front of the other, until I hit a wall.

Naturally I am quite clumsy and am used to falling, but my mind was so preoccupied with escaping my earlier encounter I just bounced right off the wall and landed flat on my side with no attempt on my part of saving myself.

Great not only was I the new, poor girl now I was freakishly clumsy and mute.

"Are you ok?" A male voice reached me and I narrowed my eyes in preparation for the embarrassing assault I was sure to follow. I look in the direction of the voice to see a different boy sitting next to me. I looked around and realized I was in the middle of a different hallway with no wall close to me.

"Oh my god, did I run into you?" I put a hand over my face as a felt the heat flow threw my cheeks. I had definitely run into people before but never without realizing it first. I had never mistaken a person for a wall.

"Actually I think it was my fault." My head jerked up at him searching his face for any signs of sarcasm but all I saw was an honest smile. Now that I was actually looking at his face I could see he was rather good looking, in an average jocky kind of way. He had blonde hair and blue eyes that seemed to reflect kindness he just couldn't hide.

He stood and brushed off his pants. A habit it seemed, because there wasn't anything on his pants at all. He leaned down and held out his hand to me. I grabbed it, sure I could use all the help I could get and struggled to get my feet under me.

"I'm Mike by the way. And you're Bella, right? Everyone has been expecting you. You are the talk of the school." He chuckled to himself.

My eyes widened in horror as I realized the attention I was getting wasn't going to last only one day as I had predicted. I should have known. This is a small school in a small town. There probably wasn't much to get excited about here. A new student was the equivalent to a new M&N color The whole world went crazy when that happened.

"Errrr...great." I tried to keep the malice out of my voice.

"Yeah, so you need help finding your first class? I feel like whoever designed this school figured all the students would be lifetime residents. I don't know how I would find anything around here if I didn't grow up here." He chuckled and scratched at the back of his head. He grabbed the wrinkled paper from my hand. "Lets see what you got here."

I was picking at the hem of my sweater when an odd feeling suddenly came over me. I looked up at Mike to see that his eyes were still on the paper in front of him. I could feel eyes on me. Of course I could feel eyes on me. I was in a school full of students expecting me. I looked around to see just how many people were looking.

It appeared that I was in an area of the school with not much traffic. There wasn't anyone around, or at least that was what I thought until I heard the echo of heels on the school's linoleum floor.

My head turned in what seemed the slowest manner possible until, at last, the owner of what appeared to be very expensive shoes, rounded the corner of the hallway I was in. Immediately my heart jumped into over drive as I realized the shoes belonged to the girl from the coffee shop. They belonged to Alice.

She was walking towards me - us. She was walking towards us so gracefully she could have been ice-skating throughout the school. She created her own wind as her jacket and hair slowly whipped around her body. As she came closer I could see a side of her mouth barely turned up in a private joke that only she knew, but was desperately trying to hide.

She was staring intently at something at the opposite side of the hall and I silently begged with every fiber of my being for her to look my way. But she didn't so I allowed my head to follow her as she passed. I could hear Mike trying to regain my attention but I just couldn't tear my gaze away.

Alice had become my new obsession. Until now I had rationalized my constant thoughts on her, to trying to figure out what I had done to upset her that night at the coffee shop. But now I knew it was so much more than that. I was complete and irrevocable obsessed. Geez, why can't I be obsessed with normal teenage girl stuff like makeup or clothes...although Alice's clothes have been a topic of my thoughts.

"Hello? Bella...?" Mike had to raise his voice to get my attention and I was eternally grateful he hadn't realized the object of my distraction.

"Yeah, sorry. What were you saying, Mike?" My eyes darted back over Mike's shoulder in hopes that she was still in view.

My body was completely unprepared for what happened next.

Black eyes met mine and my knees buckled. I grabbed onto my bag to try and cover my momentary loss of balance. My heart, which had just started to calm down, logged in my throat and I grabbed at my neck to try and keep it from jumping out of from between my lips. My mouth dried up in what I wanted to assume was fear but I knew was arousal. Cold air danced across my body as wisps of wind seemed so flow off of her and in my direction. I could feel the electricity dancing between us as the distance shortened. My vision was filled with her dark eyes and a deep sigh escaped my lips blowing at ends of her hair. Her lips curled up in a smile that made me whimper in the back of my throat. My hand came up to try and touch her but was grabbed by someone else.

I turned my head to see Mike still standing next to me.

"We should go, the last bell is about to ring." Still holding my hand he started to pull me down the hall.

When I look back in search of Alice I was shocked to find her across the hall. In fact she was all the way on the other end standing next to her brother, her eyes still trained on me. Was she never standing in front of me? Had I imagined the whole thing?

I felt like I was watching a movie and you just realize that the whole scene you had just seen never even happened; the character just imagined it, but I was the character.

Mike was pulling me down the hall in the direction of what I hoped was my first class, but noticed was also the direction of Alice. Sweat started to form at my hairline as my nerves kicking into high gear. I was getting closer and closer to her and she never stopped looking at me.

Why was she looking at me? I knew why I was looking at her. She was beautiful and perfect and seemed to have a very powerful spell on me that cause me to hallucinate about her. But me? I was just some average clumsy girl who was being lead down the hallway by some boy she just ran into, literally.

My feet dug into the floor so abruptly that even I swayed in the aftershock. Poor Mike jerked backwards like he forgot his leash was still on. He looked back at me with such shock and surprise it would have normally sent me into an acute attack. But I was dealing with my own shock and surprise. I was just about to walk up to this fairytale character like we both knew I was supposed to. Like there was some preconceived fate leading to our meeting.

I however had just realized that I was the only one living in this knew fairytale life I was creating around myself while everyone else was leading a normal life. They all knew we were standing in the hallway of Forks High School while I was shuffling down a pathway that was leading my towards a girl I had been obsessing about for half a week and had just had an hallucination about.

I groaned and looked to Mike in desperation while I swallowed back my sudden urge to vomit. Oh god. I was about to walk up to a girl that I had this fictional storyline going with, but in reality I haven't even talked to her yet!!


	7. Dangerously Wicked APOV

"She will be a great challenge for you, sister." Edward was walking me to my first class. Apparently he there was something he wanted to tell me that could not wait until lunch.

"Because of her anxiety?" It would be something I knew would push my patience, but this would be good for me. I was already far too impatient, even for a vampire, and if anything could help me control my otherwise wild sense of need for immediate satisfaction it was Bella.

"Not that I do not agree with the need to work on that particular virtue, I was not referring to her anxiety. Or perhaps I was." We had stopped in front of my locker and Edward's voiced thoughts made me stop and listen.

Edward, being a mind reader, rarely voiced if thoughts before knowing exactly what and how he was going to say. "What I mean is, I had a conversation, or more like a sentence with Bella this morning and it did not go well." Edwards thoughtful and slightly concerned eyes never wavered from mine while I took in what he was saying.

"You spoke with Bella?" I was beginning to get annoyed. I knew no more of what was going on before we had started this conversation and his, whether intentional or not, digression was beginning to put me on edge. It was what people did when they were not entirely comfortable with the information they needed to pass on to you.

" You are right. I am not completely comfortable telling you this because I do not like upsetting you. But sense you seem to be getting rather impatient," his smirk was I dea give away he was making fun of me, "I will just tell you what happened. Bella approached me in the hall before we met just now. I do not think she knew it was me at first. My back was to her as I was facing my locker. She said, 'Excuse me,' but it was so low that if I was not me I would never have heard it. She slightly startled me because I did not hear her decide to approached me before that. Alice, I can not hear her thoughts at all."

My eyes widened as he said this. Edward could not read her mind! This was indeed very surprising.

"Yes you are no more surprised then I. But this is not what I meant by a challenge. When she recognized me, from the coffee shop I can only assume, it was like fear itself swallowed her whole and she quite literally spun on her heels and ran away."

"She ran from you?" Why would she run? Its not like Edward had done anything that might have given her reason to fear him. Really no one in town feared our family. The might not have felt comfortable approaching us but there was nothing that anyone in this town would have told Bella to fear any of us.

Edward was now looking at me with agreeing eyes.

"Well this might be harder then I thought." I had come to school this morning filled with great anticipation. All night I felt as though I was being tortured with imaginary restraints as if I was being held against my will in a dungeon made of constant waves of optimistic possibilities overwhelming my mind but being forced to wait for what seemed like a lifetime for the sun to rise with the promise of seeing my Bella once again.

And now it appeared as if I would have to treat incredibly lightly when it came to speaking with this obsess worthy creature.

I sighed heavily while sliding my biology book under my arm and closing my locker. Turning to my brother I looked him directly in the eye and knew I did not need to voice my new resolution. I was going to go as slow as Bella needed in order to make this work, even if it meant chaining myself to my bed every night to control my undeniable attraction to this girl.

"I am proud of you Alice. That is something I know will not be easy for you and the mere fact that you excepted this set back in your plans means perhaps this is the right person for you after all."

I flashed him a dull by Alice standards smile and fell in step down the hall in route to class.

We - or at least I could hear their voiced before we turned the corner and I actually faltered momentarily when I realized it was Bella and a boy, Mike introducing himself. Hands off, she is mine. My territorial insticnt kincked in before I registered what it was and I had to talk myself out of ripping Milke's head off.

I could hear Bella's unenthusiastic response to Mike's explanation as to how he knew who she was. Bella did not want to be noticed. That much I could tell already. Of course she would not want everyone in the scheoll to knw who she was and heaven forbid they actually tried to tlak to her.

Come with me Bella and I will hide you from everyone. I can take yout ot my house in the woods and make you forget there is even anyone else in the world to bother you ever again.

One half of me, the human part, pushed those thoughts away and tried to remind me that that was no way to have a healthy relationship. I was a social creature anyway, of course I would want to take my Bella out. Show her the world wasn't a scary place. See her smile at all the new things I could introduce her to.

The other half of me, the vampire half, was pushing back with vivid images of very new things indeed that I very much wanted to intorduve Bella too. My mind was going wild fueled by the original thought of hiding her away. My dark side was already had her tied to my bed, her naturally timid side causing her to shy away even though she wanted me to -

My delicious thoughts were inturpted my Edwards abrupt cough that was obviously intended to reming me that hwe was still here and could read everything I was thinking.

The corner of my mouth turned up in a slightly evil grin, a mix laughter at my borther and a bit of left over enjoyment from my thoughts, as we turned the corner. There she was. Starring at me.

We did not stop our progession, I could not stop if I wanted to. All I have wanted since I saw her that day in the coffee shop was to get closer, and by god today I would get as close as I could. I purposefully did not make eye contact with her.

The lustful thoughts I had conjured earlier would make controlling my actions even harder and I did not want to risk scarring my poor Bella more then she already was.

I knew that she was following my movement down the hall which triggered my natural instinct to show off. So I acted as though I didn't even notice her as I passed her.

And then all logical thought ceased.

Her scent filled my nostrils without any warning and I was instantly wild with lust and hunger. Never in the history of my being had I experienced anything even a tenth to my sudden untamable desire to simultaneously and violently feed on her physically and sexually.

I immediately spun on the spot so that I was facing her again to find that her back has to me. I could feel the burning in my throat but something kept me from claiming her. That was when I felt the other sensation. Although her scent was practically causing lava to flow down my throat it was also rising an immeasurable need to posses and protect her.

That was when I knew I would never, could never cause her any harm. And relief washed over me for a brief second before I breathed her in again. Then it was only desire.

Her back was to me and I knew it was because Mike had demanded her attention, I would deal with him later. Then her eyes met mine and I knew she was seeing pure black in mine. A deep black that caused a natural desire in hers. Inwardly I smiled a dangerously wicked smile. She could and would be mine.

I could feel the pull from her body to mine and extended no effort to foil its obvious path. She would be in my arms before she could take her nest breath. Her hand darted to her satin throat, her bodies pathetic attempt to protect itself. If my intentions were in anyway to cause harm that hand could not stop my pinky.

Her mauve dusted lips parted and her breath rolled across my face and through my hair, causing new venom to pool in my mouth. Her cheeks were warmed with a deep blush set in not from embarrassment, but undeniable lust.

Mike drew her attention away from me yet again and I raised onto the balls of my feet, preparing to dispose of this inferior interference once and for all.

It was then that Edwards rushed words of warning, too low for any human to hear, tumbled through my walls of dark desire to allow cold reality to come crashing in.

I was on the other side of the hall in milliseconds grabbing my brothers hand to ensure I could not continue with my devised plan to end Mike Newton's life. When Bella looked back to where I was standing just seconds ago it would seem like I was never really that close. It was safer for her to think that she had made the whole thing up then to have her questioning what had just happened.

Mike was now pulling Bella down the hall in my direction. I could see the confusion on her face. The internal struggle between what she felt to be true and what she knew to be untrue. I begged her to just except what she knew to be logical and keep walking.

I only now just noticed what she was wearing. The straight leg jeans she had on were modestly fashionable and fit her lovely frame quite well. Whoever helped her pick them out did her a great favor because I could tell from her choice of shoes that if the jeans had been solely up to her she would not have made out as well. The bulky old sweater must belong to her grandmother, at least I hoped it did since it hung loosely from her shoulders and hid any possibility of shape. What I could see from the small triangle of white tank top showing where the cardigan parted at the neck line, I would definitely have preferred the sweater to stay at grandma's house.

Although I managed to observe her attire I never broke eye contact with Bella. She was making her way down the hall towards me and I was not entirely sure what was going to happen


	8. Moments of Clarity BPOV

"Bella, we have to get to class before the bell rings." Mike was looking at me with such a matter of fact expression it was almost enough to break through my sudden panic.

I looked from Mike to Alice, who had her head tilted to the side as if she was expecting something, and then back to Mike. Mike gave my hand a small tug, in an attempt to get me moving again I can only assume.

I looked to Alice one last time but could only offer, "I have to get to class," as an explanation for my departure. I followed Mike once again down the hall and away from Alice in a bit of a fog. The more distance that got between Alice and myself seemed to clear my mind.

"You know Alice Cullen then?" Mike looked back at me with curious eyes. Did I know Alice? Of course I didn't know Alice! Why did he think I know Alice?

My confusion must have been all over my face because he went on to explain. "You told her you needed to get to class, like you couldn't talk or something."

My head shot up at him. Oh my god, I did say that! What was I thinking?! What must Alice be thinking! How stupid!  
"Uhmm, I was just talking out loud. Who is Alice Cullen?" My acting skills were lacking so I wasn't surprised when Mike looked at me with doubt in his eyes as we rounded yet another corner. How was I suppose to get around this laberynth?

"She is one of Doctor Cullen's adopted children. They are all geniuses or something and beautiful but a little too snobby if you ask me. They don't talk to anyone but themselves. Alice is the short one with the crazy hair. A lot of people say she is weird but I think she seems alright. Here it is" Mike made this last announcement as we came to an open door just as the bell was ringing. He rushed in with me behind him. The room had the most light I had seen since moving here. If the sun had been out it could have been like home.

The entire length of one wall was windows, the main culprit behind the light, and it over looked the back part of the school which blended into the Forks woods. As if the trees and sky wasn't enough to entertain my eyes for the remainder of the school year, the room was filled with various dried flowers and plants and jars of things I am going to try hard to not focus on. The classroom looked like it belonged to a teacher who loved their field and I immediately felt as though I was going to learn a lot.

All the students took their seats next to their lab partners leaving me to stand awkwardly in the front. I handed the teacher, whom my paper said to be Mr. Danson, the wrinkled sheet hoping I wouldn't have to explain any further then that.  
"Miss Swan is it then? Well there is only one student without a partner and she seems to be running a bit late. Why don't you grab a book from the side counter there and have a seat at the empty table. Hopefully she shows so that you don't have to be entirely lost today." He signed the paper as he spoke and then used it to point out where the books where and which table I should sit at before handing it back to me.

I nodding quickly and carefully made my way to the counter which happened to be the sill of the windowed wall. The book was a light green, with corners that showed signs of use, but the title was familiar. I think I had this class last year under a different name. Well at least this will be easy.

The lab table I was high jacking was right next to the windows so I chose the chair closest to the window half hoping I wasn't stealing it and half not caring since the girl was late.

Mr. Danson had begun the class as soon as I started towards my desk so I pulled out my notebook to make it look as though I was paying attention when all I wanted to do was stare out the window.

It was beginning to rain so I traced the paths of water down the pains watching as it contorted the images behind it. Why couldn't people be like rain. The drops all fell the same way and traveled the same paths together.

"Miss Swan?" My head jerked back to the front of the classroom and my mouth was ready to apologize for not paying attention when it simply fell open.

Making her way towards my table was Alice Cullen and she was smiling right at me. Her gaze never wavered as she set her book on the table and took her seat in the stool next to me.

"Hi, I'm Alice. I'm glad you made it to class on time." She was extending her hand in my direction and my eyes darted from her dainty fingers to my hand wondering why it was not obeying my command to shake. That was when I noticed it was currently occupied in a death grip over the top of my new book, white knuckled and all. I immediately released the book and moved my hand to embrace hers.

"Bella," stumbled out of my mouth before I could formulate a smoother response. But then I was thankful I managed that because when my hand actually touched hers I knew I would not be capable of rational thought never mind speech.  
I couldn't tell if I the shock I felt course through my body was from Alice herself or simply the cold from her hand but either way I was enjoying it. Until I realized I was still holding her hand - no, she was still holding my hand.

I looked up from our hands to find her looking at me with something I couldn't quite place in her eyes.

"Sorry." I could feel the blush creeping up my cheeks and withdrew my hand embarrassed I was acting this way and annoyed I couldn't control myself a bit more.

She merely cocked her head to the side with that.

The intensity with which she was looking at me was starting to make me uncomfortable so I shifted on my stool to face Mr. Danson hoping we could just takes notes the rest of the class. Struggling to focus on Mr. Danson's words proved impossible as my mind followed every movement Alice made.

Her attention remained on me longer then most people would confidently allow, but then she began to open her notebook and take notes.

I snuck a look at her already half filled page and was shocked to see almost perfect penmanship. No one wrote like that anymore, especially not fashion obsessed teenagers, as Alice obviously was.

Oh. My. God! That was it! Alice was starring at what I was wearing! Of course. She clearly cared a great deal about appearances and designer labels and here I was in sneakers, jeans and a comfy sweater. She was probably trying to figure out what thrift store I shopped at.

My confidence level lowered even more then I thought possible while I laughed at my self. How could I think Alice Cullen would be interested in me?

I blinked back tears of embarrassment and ran my hand through my loose hair to try and provide something to put between Alice and myself. Once I was satisfied with the curtain of hair covering my view of Alice I could actually start paying attention to the class.

After ten minutes of Mr. Danson's lecture that I could finally digest, I realized that yes, I had already taken this class. Damn, I couldn't even depend on learning to distract me the rest of the year. What was I going to do now?

I snuck a look at Alice through a part in my self made hair curtain only to spot her focused on Mr. Danson's lecture, her brow slightly scrunched up and her bottom lip caught between her teeth. I immediately looked away as my breath caught in my throat. Even paying attention in class she looked sexy.

I was doomed.


End file.
